| 1. |
- Stickley, Andrew, et al.
(författare)
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Binge drinking among adolescents in Russia : Prevalence, risk and protective factors
- 2013
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Ingår i: Addictive Behaviours. - : Elsevier BV. - 0306-4603 .- 1873-6327. ; 38:4, s. 1988-1995
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Despite evidence that alcohol misuse has been having an increasingly detrimental effect on adolescent wellbeing in Russia in recent years this phenomenon has been little researched. Using data from 2112 children from the Arkhangelsk Social and Health Assessment (SAHA) 2003, this study examined which factors acted as 'risk' or 'protective' factors for adolescent binge drinking within three domains we termed the 'family environment', the 'alcohol environment' and 'deviant behaviour'. The results showed that in the presence of comparatively moderate levels of binge drinking among both boys and girls, being able to access alcohol easily, being unaware of the risks of binge drinking and having peers who consumed alcohol increased the risk of adolescent binge drinking - as did playing truant, smoking and marijuana use, while parental warmth was protective against binge drinking for girls. Our finding that risk and protective factors occur across domains suggests that any interventions targeted against adolescent binge drinking may need to simultaneously focus on risk behaviours in different domains, while at the same time, broader social policy should act to limit the availability of alcohol to adolescents in Russia more generally.
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| 2. |
- Stickley, Andrew, et al.
(författare)
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Crime and subjective well-being in the countries of the former Soviet Union
- 2015
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Ingår i: BMC Public Health. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1471-2458. ; 15
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Criminal victimisation and subjective well-being have both been linked to health outcomes, although as yet, comparatively little is known about the relationship between these two phenomena. In this study we used data from nine countries of the former Soviet Union (fSU) to examine the association between different types of crime and subjective well-being. Methods: Data were obtained from 18,000 individuals aged 18 and above collected during the Health in Times of Transition (HITT) survey in 2010/11 in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Ukraine. Information was obtained on respondents' experience of crime (violence and theft) and self-reported affective (happiness) and cognitive (life satisfaction) well-being. Ordered probit and ordinary least squares (OLS) regression analyses were undertaken to examine the associations between these variables. Results: In pooled country analyses, experiencing violence was associated with significantly lower happiness and life satisfaction. Theft victimisation was associated with significantly reduced life satisfaction but not happiness. Among the individual countries, there was a more pronounced association between violent victimisation and reduced happiness in Kazakhstan and Moldova. Conclusions: The finding that criminal victimisation is linked to lower levels of subjective well-being highlights the importance of reducing crime in the fSU, and also of having effective support services in place for victims of crime to reduce its detrimental effects on health and well-being.
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| 3. |
- Stickley, Andrew, et al.
(författare)
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Criminal victimisation and health : Examining the relation in nine countries of the former Soviet Union
- 2013
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Ingår i: Social Science and Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0277-9536 .- 1873-5347. ; 91, s. 76-83
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Previous research suggests that criminal victimisation can impact negatively on both physical and psychological health. However, as yet, little is known about crime and its effects on population health in the former Soviet Union (fSU) - despite a sharp growth in crime rates in the countries in this region after the collapse of the communist system. Given this gap in current knowledge, this study examined two forms of crime, theft and violent victimisation, in nine fSU countries - Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine. Using nationally representative data from the Health in Times of Transition (HITT) study collected from 18,000 respondents in 2010/11, the study had two main objectives: (1) to identify which demographic and socioeconomic factors are associated with being a victim of crime; (2) to examine the relation between criminal victimisation and two health outcomes - self-rated health and psychological distress. We found that similar factors were associated with experiencing both forms of crime among respondents. Those who were younger, not married and who consumed alcohol more frequently were at increased risk of victimisation, while greater social capital was associated with lower odds for victimisation. Low education increased the risk of experiencing violence by 1.5 times. Victimisation was strongly associated with poorer health: victims of violence were 2.5 and 2.9 times more likely to report poor self-rated health and psychological distress, respectively, while the corresponding figures for theft victimisation were 1.9 and 1.8. The strong association we observed between criminal victimisation and poorer individual health suggests that, in addition to policies that reduce rates of crime, more research is now urgently needed on victimisation. Specifically, researchers should ascertain whether the association with poor health is causal, determine its potential mechanisms, and evaluate interventions that might mitigate its impact on health that are contextually appropriate in the fSU.
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| 4. |
- Stickley, Andrew, et al.
(författare)
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Loneliness : Its Correlates and Association with Health Behaviours and Outcomes in Nine Countries of the Former Soviet Union
- 2013
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Ingår i: PLOS ONE. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1932-6203. ; 8:7
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Research suggests that the prevalence of loneliness varies between countries and that feeling lonely may be associated with poorer health behaviours and outcomes. The aim of the current study was to examine the factors associated with loneliness, and the relationship between feeling lonely and health behaviours and outcomes in the countries of the former Soviet Union (FSU) - a region where loneliness has been little studied to date.Methods: Using data from 18,000 respondents collected during a cross-sectional survey undertaken in nine FSU countries Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine - in 2010/11, country-wise logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine: the factors associated with feeling lonely; the association between feeling lonely and alcohol consumption, hazardous drinking and smoking; and whether feeling lonely was linked to poorer health (i.e. poor self-rated health and psychological distress).Results: The prevalence of loneliness varied widely among the countries. Being divorced/widowed and low social support were associated with loneliness in all of the countries, while other factors (e.g. living alone, low locus of control) were linked to loneliness in some of the countries. Feeling lonely was connected with hazardous drinking in Armenia, Kyrgyzstan and Russia but with smoking only in Kyrgyzstan. Loneliness was associated with psychological distress in all of the countries and poor self-rated health in every country except Kazakhstan and Moldova.Conclusions: Loneliness is associated with worse health behaviours and poorer health in the countries of the FSU. More individual country-level research is now needed to formulate effective interventions to mitigate the negative effects of loneliness on population well-being in the FSU.
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| 5. |
- Stickley, Andrew, et al.
(författare)
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Male solitary drinking and hazardous alcohol use in nine countries of the former Soviet Union
- 2015
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Ingår i: Drug And Alcohol Dependence. - : Elsevier BV. - 0376-8716 .- 1879-0046. ; 150, s. 105-111
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Despite evidence that many people engage in solitary drinking and that it might be associated with negative consequences, to date, little research has focused on this form of drinking behaviour. This study examined the prevalence and factors associated with solitary drinking, and assessed whether it is linked with hazardous alcohol use among males in nine countries of the former Soviet Union (fSU).METHODS: Data came from a cross-sectional population-based survey undertaken in 2010/11 in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine. Information was obtained on the frequency of solitary drinking among male regular drinkers (i.e., those consuming alcoholic drinks at least once a month), and on problem drinking (CAGE) and heavy episodic drinking (HED). Logistic regression analysis was used to examine associations between the variables.RESULTS: The prevalence of occasional and frequent solitary drinking ranged from 8.4% (Georgia) to 42.4% (Azerbaijan), and 3.1% (Kazakhstan) to 8.2% (Armenia), respectively. Solitary drinking was associated with being older, divorced/widowed, living alone, having a bad/very bad household financial situation, lower levels of social support, and poor self-rated health. Occasional solitary drinking was linked to problem drinking and HED, while frequent solitary alcohol use was related to problem drinking.CONCLUSIONS: Solitary drinking is relatively common among male regular drinkers in the fSU and is linked to older age, social and economic disadvantage, and hazardous alcohol use.
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| 6. |
- Stickley, Andrew, et al.
(författare)
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Peer victimisation and its association with psychological and somatic health problems among adolescents in northern Russia
- 2013
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Ingår i: Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1753-2000. ; 7:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: A growing body of evidence from countries around the world suggests that school-based peer victimisation is associated with worse health outcomes among adolescents. So far, however, there has been little systematic research on this phenomenon in the countries of the former Soviet Union. The aim of this study was to examine the relation between peer victimisation at school and a range of different psychological and somatic health problems among Russian adolescents.METHODS: This study used data from the Social and Health Assessment (SAHA) - a cross-sectional survey undertaken in Arkhangelsk, Russia in 2003. Information was collected from 2892 adolescents aged 12-17 about their experiences of school-based peer victimisation and on a variety of psychological and somatic health conditions. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine the association between victimisation and health.RESULTS: Peer victimisation in school was commonplace: 22.1% of the students reported that they had experienced frequent victimisation in the current school year (girls - 17.6%; boys - 28.5%). There was a strong relationship between experiencing victimisation and reporting worse health among both boys and girls with more victimisation associated with an increased risk of experiencing worse health. Girls in the highest victimisation category had odds ratios ranging between 1.90 (problems with eyes) and 5.26 (aches/pains) for experiencing somatic complaints when compared to their non-victimised counterparts, while the corresponding figures for boys were 2.04 (headaches) and 4.36 (aches/pains). Girls and boys who had the highest victimisation scores were also 2.42 (girls) and 3.33 (boys) times more likely to report symptoms of anxiety, over 5 times more likely to suffer from posttraumatic stress and over 6 times more likely to experience depressive symptoms.CONCLUSION: Peer victimisation at school has a strong association with poor health outcomes among Russian adolescents. Effective school-based interventions are now urgently needed to counter the negative effects of victimisation on adolescents' health in Russia.
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| 7. |
- Stickley, Andrew, et al.
(författare)
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Perceived discrimination and psychological distress in nine countries of the former Soviet Union
- 2019
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Ingår i: International Journal of Social Psychiatry. - : Sage Publications. - 0020-7640 .- 1741-2854. ; 55:2, s. 158-168
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND:: Perceived discrimination has been linked to worse mental health. However, little is known about this association in the countries of the former Soviet Union (fSU).AIM:: To address this deficit, this study examined the link between perceived discrimination and psychological distress in nine fSU countries.METHODS:: Data were analyzed from 18,000 adults aged ⩾18 years obtained during the Health in Times of Transition (HITT) survey undertaken in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine in 2010 and 2011. A single-item measure was used to assess discrimination. Psychological distress was measured with a 12-item scale. Logistic regression analysis and meta-analysis were used to examine associations.RESULTS:: After adjusting for all potential confounders, when using none/little discrimination as the reference category, moderate and strong discrimination were associated with significantly increased odds for psychological distress in the total population and in men and women separately with odds ratios ranging from 1.93 to 2.64. Meta-analysis based on country-wise estimates showed that the level of between-country heterogeneity was negligible.CONCLUSION:: Perceived discrimination is associated with psychological distress in countries throughout the fSU. Quantitative and qualitative research is now warranted to determine its specific forms and impact on population health in individual fSU countries.
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| 8. |
- Stickley, Andrew, et al.
(författare)
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Prevalence and factors associated with the use of alternative (folk) medicine practitioners in 8 countries of the former Soviet Union
- 2013
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Ingår i: BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1472-6882. ; 13
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Research suggests that since the collapse of the Soviet Union there has been a sharp growth in the use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) in some former Soviet countries. However, as yet, comparatively little is known about the use of CAM in the countries throughout this region. Against this background, the aim of the current study was to determine the prevalence of using alternative (folk) medicine practitioners in eight countries of the former Soviet Union (fSU) and to examine factors associated with their use. Methods: Data were obtained from the Living Conditions, Lifestyles and Health (LLH) survey undertaken in eight former Soviet countries (Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine) in 2001. In this nationally representative cross-sectional survey, 18428 respondents were asked about how they treated 10 symptoms, with options including the use of alternative (folk) medicine practitioners. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to determine the factors associated with the treatment of differing symptoms by such practitioners in these countries. Results: The prevalence of using an alternative (folk) medicine practitioner for symptom treatment varied widely between countries, ranging from 3.5% in Armenia to 25.0% in Kyrgyzstan. For nearly every symptom, respondents living in rural locations were more likely to use an alternative (folk) medicine practitioner than urban residents. Greater wealth was also associated with using these practitioners, while distrust of doctors played a role in the treatment of some symptoms. Conclusions: The widespread use of alternative (folk) medicine practitioners in some fSU countries and the growth of this form of health care provision in the post-Soviet period in conditions of variable licensing and regulation, highlights the urgent need for more research on this phenomenon and its potential effects on population health in the countries in this region.
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| 9. |
- Stickley, Andrew, et al.
(författare)
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Smoking status, nicotine dependence and happiness in nine countries of the former Soviet Union
- 2015
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Ingår i: Tobacco Control. - : BMJ. - 0964-4563 .- 1468-3318. ; 24:2, s. 190-197
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: The US Food and Drug Administration has established a policy of substantially discounting the health benefits of reduced smoking in its evaluation of proposed regulations because of the cost to smokers of the supposed lost pleasure they suffer by no longer smoking. This study used data from nine countries of the former Soviet Union (fSU) to explore this association in a setting characterised by high rates of (male) smoking and smoking-related mortality.METHODS: Data came from a cross-sectional population-based study undertaken in 2010/2011 in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine. Information was collected from 18 000 respondents aged ≥18 on smoking status (never, ex-smoking and current smoking), cessation attempts and nicotine dependence. The association between these variables and self-reported happiness was examined using ordered probit regression analysis.RESULTS: In a pooled country analysis, never smokers and ex-smokers were both significantly happier than current smokers. Smokers with higher levels of nicotine dependence were significantly less happy than those with a low level of dependence.CONCLUSIONS: This study contradicts the idea that smoking is associated with greater happiness. Moreover, of relevance for policy in the fSU countries, given the lack of public knowledge about the detrimental effects of smoking on health but widespread desire to quit reported in recent research, the finding that smoking is associated with lower levels of happiness should be incorporated in future public health efforts to help encourage smokers to quit by highlighting that smoking cessation may result in better physical and emotional health.
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| 10. |
- Stickley, Andrew, et al.
(författare)
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Urban-rural differences in psychological distress in nine countries of the former Soviet Union
- 2015
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Ingår i: Journal of Affective Disorders. - : Elsevier BV. - 0165-0327 .- 1573-2517. ; 178, s. 142-148
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Studies have shown that the prevalence of mental illness can vary between urban and rural locations. This study extended research to the countries of the former Soviet Union (fSU) by assessing the association between settlement type and psychological distress and whether factors associated with psychological distress vary by settlement type.METHODS: Data on 18,000 adults aged ≥18 years from the Health in Times of Transition (HITT) survey undertaken in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine in 2010/11 were analyzed. Settlement types were country capitals, regional capitals, cities/other urban settlements, and villages. Psychological distress was defined as the country-specific highest quintile of a composite score based on 11 questions. Logistic regression analysis with random effects was used to examine associations.RESULTS: In a pooled country analysis, living in a smaller urban settlement or village was associated with significantly higher odds for psychological distress compared to living in the country capital. Lower social support was a strong correlate of psychological distress in all locations except capital cities.LIMITATIONS: The psychological distress measure has not been formally validated in the study countries.CONCLUSIONS: Lower levels of urbanicity are associated with greater psychological distress in the fSU countries. As many Western studies have linked greater urbanization to poorer mental health, this highlights the need for caution in extrapolating findings from one part of the world to others and the importance of undertaking research on the geographical correlates of mental health in different world regions.
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